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News you need to know  Top
Revealing more secrets of the H1N1 virus
As the 2009 H1N1 virus continues to spread and claim more lives around the world, a new study by a virologist from the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine indicates that the virus is more virulent than previously thought. Lead researcher Dr. Yoshihiro Kawaoka says the H1N1 virus, unlike run-of-the-mill seasonal flu viruses, can infect cells deep in the lungs, where it can cause pneumonia and, in severe cases, death. Seasonal flu viruses typically infect only cells in the upper respiratory system and don't replicate as easily, the study found. For more information, contact Tania Banak at 608-263-6914 or banakt@svm.vetmed.wisc.edu.
Getting to the heart of the matter
Recent discoveries into the cause of heart valve disease in dogs may lead to advancements in treating the condition in people. Dr. Chris Orton, a cardiac surgeon at Colorado State University's Veterinary Teaching Hospital, has found that naturally occurring heart valve disease in dogs and humans is virtually identical, and that cells in the diseased heart valves produce what may be the disease-causing agent – serotonin – on their own. This is the first time that scientists have found that serotonin is being made in the heart valve, and not just in the brain or the gut as was previously thought. The discovery of the local creation of serotonin in heart valves may lead to new ways to slow, treat or prevent the disease in both animals and humans. For more information, contact Dell Rae Moellenberg at 970-491-6009 or DellRae.Moellenberg@ColoState.edu.
New findings on BPA
Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical widely used in plastic food containers and baby bottles and known to cause reproductive problems in the offspring of pregnant mice exposed to it, may also affect adult mice. A new study out of the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine shows for the first time that chronic exposure to low doses of BPA can impair the growth and function of reproductive cells in adult mice. Scientists have concerns that fetuses, infants and children exposed to BPA may have developmental and behavior problems. Now, U of I veterinary biosciences professor Jodi Flaws says it might be time to study if adult exposure to BPAs contributes to infertility problems and menopausal symptoms. For more information, contact Chris Beuoy at 217-244-1562 or beuoy@uiuc.edu.
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A horse is a horse ...
They might not be able to talk like Mr. Ed, but horses at the University of California-Davis' Regenerative Medicine Laboratory may help us find more answers to treating orthopedic injuries and other diseases in people. According to the new lab's director, veterinarian Sean Owens, researchers there hope to advance both animal and human stem-cell medicine by conducting clinical trials and improving the way the stem cells are processed. Ongoing clinical trials in horses include those focusing on tendon tears and fractured knees. The researchers' goal is to develop better treatments for horses and to use those results to support human studies of the same treatments. For more information, contact Lynn Narlesky at 530-752-5257 or lnarlesky@ucdavis.edu.
News you can use Top
World Rabies Day, Sept. 28, 2009: Communities across the globe will celebrate the third annual World Rabies Day, an event supported by the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Alliance for Rabies Control and many others. The event will increase knowledge of the disease and raise awareness that rabies, while responsible for killing more than 55,000 people each year, is preventable. For more information, go to www.makerabieshistory.org or contact David Kirkpatrick at 847-285-6782.
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